Dr. Close’s Medical Practice extended from Ireleth near Askam, to the South End of Walney, a distance of ten miles. The population was under 2000. The Dalton doctor rode on horseback to visit his patients, travelling the lanes and the old red-stained iron ore road. His daily rounds took him through the Furness countryside, inspiring him to write about some of the villages and their inhabitants.
“The parish of Dalton is particularly healthy, the cool air from off the western ocean being rarified in the summer months, its slow current is often accelerated into pleasant gales, which ventilate the fertile plains of this district and the rest of Low Furness with air of the most salubrious quality”.
“The parish of Dalton is particularly healthy, the cool air from off the western ocean being rarified in the summer months, its slow current is often accelerated into pleasant gales, which ventilate the fertile plains of this district and the rest of Low Furness with air of the most salubrious quality”.
Wedding door,
Dalton Church
Dalton Church
In 1803, William Close married Miss Isabella Charnock in St. Mary’s Parish Church, Dalton. A son, John, was born in 1805 and a daughter, Jane a year later.
There are no surviving pictures of Doctor Close, but he is described as a small
There are no surviving pictures of Doctor Close, but he is described as a small
slender man by his contemporaries. He was respected for his candour, sincerity and diligent attention to his professional duties.
The village of Barrow is described as a small sea-port, situated about three miles to the south-east of Furness Abbey – “a place to which invalids often repair to bathe in the summer season. It contains two commodious Inns and is the first sea port town in Furness for the exportation of iron ore, oats and barley.”
Dalton Castle
from “Antiquities
of Furness”
from “Antiquities
of Furness”
“The small village of Rampside at the southern extremity of Furness, is frequently a place of resort for genteel company, who repair thither to bathe or for the advantage of the sea air.” William Close considers the manners of these parts “to be tinctured with a commendable degree of politeness” and that integrity was a general virtue.
And, writing about the village of Biggar, following an excursion … “many of the inhabitants were actively engaged in loading their carts with grain for the market at Ulverston”…
(Walney was known as the “granary of Furness”; wheat, oats and barley were grown).
The above quotations are taken from the 1805 edition of “The Antiquities of Furness” which contains details of Close’s investigative research. The book was reprinted in 1813, 1819 and 1822. The supplement also contains notes on Furness Abbey, Dalton Castle, The Pile of Fouldrey, Gleaston Castle and several other Furness places, accompanied by the author’s drawings.
“Some account of George Romney “ by William Close is also contained in the “Antiquities of Furness” pp. 347 -358. Edited by William Close.
The registers of 1802 recorded 375 births and 210 burials in Furness – one quarter of the total being from Ulverston.
Furness, in Close’s life time was largely self supporting ; locals dined on the produce of their own labours. Food included oatmeal, high quality mutton, herrings in season, and salmon. Imported tea and sugar were too expensive for poor people.
Towards the end of the eighteenth century farmers became very prosperous. The Atkinson family who farmed land near Furness Abbey became so rich that their neighbours thought they had found the Abbot’s buried treasure!
(Walney was known as the “granary of Furness”; wheat, oats and barley were grown).
The above quotations are taken from the 1805 edition of “The Antiquities of Furness” which contains details of Close’s investigative research. The book was reprinted in 1813, 1819 and 1822. The supplement also contains notes on Furness Abbey, Dalton Castle, The Pile of Fouldrey, Gleaston Castle and several other Furness places, accompanied by the author’s drawings.
“Some account of George Romney “ by William Close is also contained in the “Antiquities of Furness” pp. 347 -
The registers of 1802 recorded 375 births and 210 burials in Furness – one quarter of the total being from Ulverston.
Furness, in Close’s life time was largely self supporting ; locals dined on the produce of their own labours. Food included oatmeal, high quality mutton, herrings in season, and salmon. Imported tea and sugar were too expensive for poor people.
Towards the end of the eighteenth century farmers became very prosperous. The Atkinson family who farmed land near Furness Abbey became so rich that their neighbours thought they had found the Abbot’s buried treasure!
